Bengal Swamp
The Bengal Swamp is an ecoregion of 100 million AD. It is a vast area of inland sea, semi-brackish lagoons, swampland, marshland, and wetland, fringed by tropical rainforest and grassland. The swamp was formed by the collision of East Africa and South-East Asia, as well as rapidly-rising sea levels. Geography & climate As the continents drifted, East Africa broke away from the rest of the continent along the Great Rift Valley, and collided with parts of South and Southeast Asia. Rising sea levels flooded the area between the two landmasses, creating a vast inland sea where the Bay of Bengal used to be. The collision of the tectonic plates of East Africa and Southeast Asia also gave rise to a volcanic mountain range on the two plates' fault line. Rivers coming down from the mountains washed rocks and sediments into the inland sea, slowly filling the basin with nutrients, making it shallower. Eventually, the inland sea was diminished, and fresh water from the mountains mixed with the residual saltwater to create a vast, brackish swamp covering hundreds of thousands of square miles. Like most of the lowland areas at this time, the continent became inundated with water. Sediments carried down from the mountains in intricate river systems make the water of the swamp thick, murky, and impenetrable by light. These sediments, which are constantly replenished by rivers and volcanic ash from the mountains, have created a system of ox-bow lakes and backwaters seperated by flats and islands of mud. These muddy islands are stabilized by the roots of tightly-spaced trees which grow in the warm climate wherever the land is solid enough for them to take root. The Bengal Swamp is extremely wet and humid. Its position near the equator means its average temperature is about 40°C, and the average humidity is 99%. Life , a giant testudine.]] The humid greenhouse conditions of the Bengal Swamp make it ideal for vegetation. The deltas, rivers, lakes and sandbanks are choked by aquatic plant life, reeds, and long tropical grasses. Trees flourish on any land tightly-packed enough to allow them to grow, their roots stabilizing the ground. The dominant animals of the swamp are reptiles, amphibians, cephalopods, and fish. The waters of the swamp naturally support large communities of fish, providing prey for many other animals, but one species, the lurkfish, is itself a predator, stunning or killing its prey with electric shocks. One animal on which it preys is the swampus, an amphibious octopus which has developed the capability to drag itself onto land for extended periods of time. The largest animals in the swamp are reptiles: the toraton, a giant tortoise, is one of the largest land animals of all time, and adults have no predators. These enormous animals spend their time browsing on trees in the terrestrial savannah regions of the swamp. Gallery Bengal Swamp shore.png Bengal Swamp treeline.png Bengal Swamp woodland.png Bengal Swamp coastline.png Swampus family.png Behind the scenes In "Waterland," the Bengal Swamp was filmed in northern Argentina's Iberá Wetlands and in Somerset's Avalon Marshes. Iberá was also used as a filming location in "The Great Plateau". List of appearances Which is your favourite organism of the ? Toraton Swampus Lurkfish *The Future Is Wild'' **1x01. Welcome to the Future **1x06. Waterland **1x13. The Tentacled Forest (stock footage cameo) *''The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future'' *''The Future Is Wild'' (fulldome show) *''The Future Is Wild'' manga **03. Bengal Swamp *''The Future Is Wild'' animated series **1x01. Electric Fisherman **1x04. Toratonnage **1x05. Think Big **1x06. Squibbon See, Squibbon Do **1x17. Around the World In 80 Minutes *''The Future Is Wild: The Living Book'' *''The Future Is Wild VR'' Notes *The French name for the Bengal Swamp is "Marais du Pakistan" (Pakistan Swamp). Pakistan is on the opposite side of the Indian subcontinent to Bengal. References Category:Ecoregions Category:Ecoregions of 100 million AD Category:100 million AD